When one thinks of colors that represent Japan, of course the iconic red and white of the Rising Sun come to mind. But look a little deeper and indigo and white take center stage. You see it so often reflected in fabric and ceramics across the centuries. In fact there is an entire book dedicated to it.

Probably a bit old fashioned of me, but when I think of yukata instantly blue and white comes to mind. And not just the colors but the technique. I am fascinated by the stencil dying method which results in a rich print. There is no front and back to the fabric like modern printing methods. Now if I remember correctly white with an indigo design was ideal for day as it looked cool and refreshing while indigo with a white print was worn at night. Something about the dye being a natural insect repellent. So I guess the more of it the better in the evening. Since the summer festival will spill from day to night I am going to go with both. ☆彡

For the yukata blouse I choose a print with carnations and a stream. It has a large design with lots of open space. I want the blouse to really stand out compared to the cupcake lolita skirt so the big print and high contrast should work nicely. Then for the skirt and bloomers the reverse, an indigo print on a white base. Since most yukata do not incorporate 2 fabrics, I dug deep into my collection to find something complimentary. The best match was a bolt that also features carnations but in a medium size print that repeats frequently filling the entire space.

Thank goodness I have a big floor! Because I needed all the space I could get when cutting the fabric. Kimono and Yukata fabric comes in bolts typically 14 inches wide but up to 13 yards long. So using the fabric in a non-traditional way means I will be piecing together many seams to create additional width. Hopefully it will all come together and not look like a patchwork mess. Given the volume of the lolita silhouette this project did require pretty much the entire amount of fabric from both bolts.

My goal was to finish the blouse this past weekend, but I didn’t. O_O That’s OK. I would rather take my time and do a good job than rush-rush through it. If folks at work play nice this week I can sneak out right at 5pm and finish up in a couple of days. If not, then I will pick up next weekend. All I have left to do is add the lace to the sleeves, attach them to the blouse body and then whip up a couple of detachable bows (this is a lolita coordinate after all.) So far I am absolutely thrilled with how it is coming together. I think it is going to be stunning.

Dear Reader, Occasional diary more than blog, here you will find sewing projects and other musings related to Japanese alternative fashion and culture. With love, Sheri